


Stop and smell the roses

by regencyaus



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Amortentia, Fluff, HP: EWE, Hogwarts Eighth Year, Like the amortentia smells like you but i tried to take seriously?, M/M, also there's an epilogue, you can't stop me from writing an epilogue on a 4k fic lalala
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-17
Updated: 2016-10-17
Packaged: 2018-08-23 00:38:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8307082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/regencyaus/pseuds/regencyaus
Summary: Harry really, really needs to start paying more attention.  In his defense, he's been having a very long day. Which is why he runs his mouth before he even thinks about why, exactly, the whole potions classroom would be smelling like Malfoy's stupid cologne.    "You're the master of not thinking about things, Potter. Half of your hero moments were due entirely to good timing, a lot of luck, and you doing things you didn't think about."  Well, okay, but no need to be rude.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Title from the quote: "The beauty in life is in each precious moment! Stop and smell the roses." by Tanja Christine Jaeger
> 
> Not beta read! All mistakes are my own.

Harry's late for class, because of _course_ he is. He has double potions with the Slytherins, and he's bad at potions and should really attend the classes and use all the help he can get, which is why the universe conspires against him. Neville snores all night and Harry barely sleeps until almost morning, and then, obviously, misses the alarm, and wakes up to find that he lost his socks, and spends a very long time looking for them before, oh yeah, wizard, and just accio-ing the damn things, and dressing in a hurry. Which is why he completely missed transformation, and is almost _twenty_ minutes late when he finds himself standing outside their classroom for potions. 

Maybe that's the moment when he should have just said screw it and skipped it altogether, but then Professor Slughorn notices him standing there through the half opened door and waves him in. 

He feels it, the very moment he goes through the door, like a wave coming from all corners at once and just crashing into him. It's everywhere, and it overflows his senses so thoroughly that he forgets his goal to be inconspicuous and sit down. Instead he stays there, in the middle of the room, and slowly turns to Malfoy. Because that's his cologne, he's sure, but it doesn't smell like Malfoy just decided to wear some today. It doesn't even smell like he accidentally dropped it and it's now extra strong around his desk. It smell like he _threw_ the damn thing. Repeatedly. In all desks, and every other surface, just for kicks. 

Everyone is paying attention to him by now, and Malfoy glares, probably just pissed off by nature. Harry takes a deep breath and gets a little dizzy. The smell is strong and earthy, a hint of something spicy teasing just under the surface, if you look for it. There's also a bit of something woody or flowery that he doesn't remember scenting in Malfoy before, but he didn't spend (all) his time trying to smell Malfoy anyway, so it's a not a surprise that he doesn’t remember every detail. And it's still, clearly and undeniably, him. Harry takes another breath and thinks he could get addicted to this. 

"Mr. Potter, is everything al--" 

"What do you want, Potter?" Malfoy's irritation cuts off Professor Slughorn's careful concern and Harry notices startled that he's still staring. He hears someone suck in a quick breath and a faint "oh, god" that he's fairly certain comes from Hermione, but he's too distracted because what? Malfoy clearly did this, why does he look so mad that Harry would actually notice his poor excuse for a prank, why is no one doing anything, what the hell. 

"Some of us got here in time for class and are actually busy, you know." 

"What the _hell_ did you do, Malfoy?" 

Slughorn protests with a "language, Mr. Potter" and Harry quickly apologizes, without even looking away. 

"Sorry, Professor." 

"What on earth are you talking about, Potter?" Malfoy sounds genuinely confused. 

He sees Hermione stand up and raise an arm in Harry's direction, pacifying. She has that look on her face reserved exclusively for when he's about to do something stupid. Malfoy just gets even angrier, for some reason. 

"Harry, the potion we're preparing, it's- we recreated one we have seen before and we're gonna start working on the cure, I really think you should sit down for this--" She's probably about to chastise him for being late and on top of that disturbing the class, and okay, fair, but he's sure this can wait five minutes. Malfoy narrows his eyes when Harry turns to him again.

"What am I talking about, seriously?" Malfoy crosses his arms, defiant. "The entire class smells like your stupid cologne, Malfoy. Did you go insane and start pouring it everywhere to prove a point, like dogs peeing on things? You know what, scratch that, that'd be typical you. I wouldn't even be surprised." Now there are gasps from all over the room. Malfoy pales, absolutely still. Harry takes another deep breath and thinks he can finally place the woody hint of something as his broomstick, recognizes the flowery smell of the Burrow. He has a second to think, I remember feeling this before, and then it all comes back to him, but it's too late.

Malfoy recovers _fuming_ , Harry has never seen him so angry before. He jumps out of his chair and snarls at Harry, there's no other way to describe it. "Is this fucking _funny_ to you?"

"Malfoy--"

"Good job, Potter, joke of the century. Your fangirls going to have the _time of their lives_ when they hear about it." 

"Malfoy, I'm--" 

Malfoy takes a panicked look around, but he doesn't seem angry anymore, just terrified and heart-broken. "I don't think very highly of you at all, don't fool yourself, but I guess I somehow still managed to expect better." 

He grabs his things and leaves the classroom.

Time seems to stand still for a few moments after he walks away. Then, almost all at once, the gossip starts around the room. Hermione comes to stand next to him and gives him a hug, and Ron is still staring, like he didn't quite process it yet. 

"I'm sorry." She whispers, and he holds her tighter. "I should have warned you." 

"You did try to. Thank you anyway." He whispers back, but he's too shocked, too hurt to say anything else. This secret he thought he was keeping so well, thrown out in the open over something so stupid. By dinner the gossip will have reached the entire castle, and Malfoy thinks it was a prank and may never even look at him again, and he's just lost. 

He was being so careful, not approaching him anymore than he'd have to, and not going out of his way to start or avoid a fight, not wanting to draw unnecessary attention. He couldn't stop himself from looking, sometimes, the way a few of his shirts pulled tight across a well defined body, or the way his eyes shined when he laughed at any of his friends' jokes. But Harry's gaze didn't linger, he never did anything that could make Malfoy uncomfortable, and he thought he was on his way to just survive this last year, not see him again for a while and get over it. 

Hermione seems to understand though, because she just gives him a small smile as she pulls away. That snaps Slughorn out of his trance, and he tells everyone to get back to their tables and continue with the assignment. 

 

Later, working with Ron on the Amortentia cure, his friend is still very confused, but he clearly wants to understand, and probably help, if he can, so after apparently debating for half of the remaining class, he asks: 

"But, Harry. You've been trying very hard to help the Slytherins and to stop bullying, and it wasn't even that funny anyway, so, why did you say that? To Malfoy?" He looks down at the cauldron and frowns a little. "I mean, I don't- I'm, I'm not-. I just want to understand." 

Harry sighs. "Ron, I was twenty minutes late. I didn't know or remember what today's assignment was going to be, so I had no idea that was Amortentia."

Ron ponders over this for a second and Harry is suddenly terrified, and just exhausted. What if on top of all of that his best friend thinks he's disgusting, or doesn't accept that, and he's just supposed to change everything to keep- 

"I didn't know. I'm sorry." And Harry is so grateful for his friends. 

 

They work most of the way in silence, and it's comfortable, because Harry needs some space to brood and Ron can help him with that. But just before finishing the last spins on the potion, Ron talks to him again. 

"You know he got so upset because he thought you were trying to humiliate him, right?" 

"I know Ron, he thinks it was a prank-" 

"Yeah Harry, he thought you were trying to make him believe you so you could laugh at his reaction later." Harry blinks at him. Ron rolls his eyes. "Because _he_ likes _you_." 

Harry blinks a few more times. 

"...you think so?" 

"Well, duh." That was Lavander, in the table in front of them, not even pretending she wasn't listening.

"He has for years, mate." Neville, this time. 

"When did you all become Hermione?" 

"I'm a good influence." Harry looks back to see her smiling at him. "But they're right, you know." 

"And he thinks you were trying to do something you weren't, so it's not like he can be upset forever. You should talk to him." 

Harry thinks about what Ron is saying and yeah, he should. He really should. If nothing else works, than he still needs to clear things up. And he definitely owes Malfoy an apology. He really needs to talk to him. 

He's halfway out of the class when he hears the small "wha...? I didn't mean _right now_!", and the grumbling from the professor about teenagers and their drama but the next moment he's too far to hear anything else. 

 

And that's how he finds himself just outside the castle, by the lake. The map didn't show Malfoy anywhere inside, and this is his next safe bet, unless Malfoy has left the school altogether, or maybe even the country, and is now thousand of kilometres away. 

Turns out he doesn't have to worry for long, because he soon finds Malfoy's things, in a heap on the grass. A little further ahead he finds the guy himself, sitting with his back to a tree, shoeless and careless, completing the view. His eyes are closed, the wind playing with his hair in a fascinating way, and Harry thinks he could look for hours without ever growing bored. 

He's about to announce his presence, anything, when he's beat to it. 

"It's rude to stare, you know." 

Harry almost jumps out of his skin. 

"I'm sorry." He doesn't really see the point in denying anyway. 

Draco sighs. 

"Sit down Potter." Harry hesitates. He lowers himself to the ground next to him, careful to leave some good space between them. Not the time to push his luck. 

They stay like that for a moment, Harry trying to decide what he wants to say, what Draco wants him to say, absolutely confused. 

"I wasn't trying to humiliate you." He starts quietly. 

"I know." Harry stops. He stares at Draco, disbelief all over his face. Draco stays looking resolutely at the lake ahead. 

"...seriously? Because it sure didn't sound like it an hour ago. You know, when you shouted at me and left in the middle of a class." 

"Yes, well Potter, you took your sweet time following me. I've had a few epiphanies since then." 

"I didn't even know I was supposed to follow you!" 

"You weren't." 

Harry is almost giving up on this conversation. 

"Again, like I said, I had enough time for a few epiphanies." 

"Well, and..?" 

"And I-" He seems to be gathering his thoughts, clearly struggling with what he wants to say. But he has this determined look on his face, and he soon starts again. "And while I was here, slightly disconcerted--" 

"You mean fuming with rage." Harry can't help but add. 

"Shup up, Potter. I'm trying to say something important here, and I won't do it again. This is your once in a lifetime opportunity." 

That was a lie, Harry was sure of that. It was quite easy to get Draco to monologue about his life, but he lets it pass. 

"And while I was here, slightly disconcerted, I realized it was very unlikely, if not altogether impossible, that you were trying to humiliate me. That it's not the kind of thing you do, not like this. That if it had been your intention you would have had opportunities long before today, but that it doesn't make sense, because you're not like this. You never were, but especially- after everything, I mean. We're not 13 year old kids trying to provoke each other, we're well past that. I don't think this is the kind of thing you would find funny." 

"Of course I wouldn't Malfoy!" 

"Shhhh" He waved his arm, in a 'you be quiet' kind of gesture. He paused again, figuring out the right words. He still hasn't looked at Harry. "After I fully absorbed this I started to calm down, getting in touch with my inner self-" 

"You did all of that in one hour?" Harry wonders, mostly to himself. 

"I swear Potter, if you interrupt me one more time I..." He doesn't finish the thought. It seems like he's trying not to laugh though, so Harry doesn't think it's that bad. "........shit. Where was I?" 

"Getting in touch with your inner self?" 

"Getting in touch with my inner self," He acts like Harry hasn't said anything (which, in this case, was probably for the best. Harry is willing to admit that.). But he was blushing very nicely, and Harry was distracted. He looks pretty when he blushes. And he was blushing because of how Harry had said it, the insinuation there, and he instantly gets a mental image of Draco gasping quietly and pleasing himself with his own fingers and wow Harry probably really shouldn't go there. He notices startled that Draco kept talking. "I finally asked myself the important question, and realized the answer was implicit and not necessary. And then I went on to the next part, which is how to deal with this brand new--"

"Wait, what question?" 

Draco looked at him like he sprouted a second head. 

Wait, Draco looked at him. That's progress, right? 

Except Draco is still looking at him, starting into his eyes with so much emotion that Harry feels overwhelmed. He thinks he's breathing a little harder, his heart working double, and there's something trying to crawl out his chest at the very sight of him and all Harry can think, like a loop in his head, is the word beautiful. 

"The question, if he wasn't playing a sick trick, then why would Harry say that Amortentia smells of me?" And he's telling this little story about the past hour but he's asking Harry this, right now, it's on the way that his eyes are searching for something in him and the way his posture is still a bit closed off, like he doesn't quite believe this yet.

Harry knows what he has to do, which doesn't mean he's not nervous as fuck. 

He takes a deep breath, and... 

"Because it's the truth. I didn't even think about it--"

"You're the master of not thinking about things. Half of your hero moments were due entirely to good timing, a lot of luck, and you doing things you didn't think about."

"Oh come on, I just meant--" 

"Yeah, I know what you meant." 

And then he has a hand in Harry's jaw, sliding to the back of his head and he's leaning oh, so slowly, so Harry presses clumsily up instead and Draco is laughing at him, the arsehole, laughing against his lips, a breath away. And then they're kissing, actually kissing, and it's better than anything Harry could ever even hope for. Draco's hand tilts Harry's head back and then it just tangles in his hair, and Harry thinks he might have wanted to do that for a long time. His lips are soft, and they part for Harry's when he tries to pull one of them between his own. He has never kissed a guy before, and he's not sure what exactly he expected, but he was sure it would be rougher, harsher. And, he thinks, it can still be like that too, he guesses, but here Draco just seems happy to let him explore, probably still afraid he might do something to scare him off. 

But that's good enough, because he's completely lost in the slow back and forth between their mouths, the addictive way Draco's lips taste. Well, that is until he tries to use his tongue, more curiosity and instinct than skill at this point, and Draco takes that as permission, takes that as the request it is to kiss him everything he's been holding back. He holds Harry's head still with his hand and just takes control, so good Harry feels week. He thinks Draco may not have all that much experience either, but oh, he feels so hot, Harry decides they can just figure it out together. He pulls away gasping, a strange mixture of excited, embarrassed, and so very turned on. 

"Draco." He completely stops, looking at him. 

"You've never called me that before."

"Oh. Is that... Can I?" He doesn't know when he started thinking of him as Draco to begin with, but he guesses it doesn't really matter anyway. 

And the "yeah" he gets as an answer is barely above a whisper before they're kissing again, more of a give and take this time when Harry finally thinks to brings his hands up and tangle in silk soft hair, like it was always that easy, like they don't have a care in the world. But they do, and Draco seems to shake out of it first, with the hole 'very public place' thing getting to him.

"We should probably head back. Slughorn wasn't much of a problem, but other teachers will start taking house points. People are going to talk about it as it is, anyway, no need to make it worse." 

And yeah, he has a point, Harry guesses. He still looks a little dejected anyway when he realizes Draco added something.

"Sorry?"

"Honestly, Potter. I said, you also didn't show up for breakfast this morning, you must be starving."

Harry stares, too surprised he noticed, that he'd worry, that he'd remember this at all. He thinks about how cranky Draco was at potions before he even said anything, thinks about missing breakfast and showing up late for the _second_ class of the day with his hair barely brushed and thinks Malfoy may have had his reasons after all. The rush of sympathy and affection is new, but again, a lot of things about his day were. As they go back, Harry is still strangely disappointed about leaving when he just got here, but can't help feeling that this is only the beginning, after all. 

 

They get all they way to the entrance of the great hall, ready to separate to their respective tables, when something else crosses Harry's mind "Technically, I never said Amortentia smells like you." 

"Hmm?" Draco looks back at him, a little frown on his face. 

"You said you sat there and asked yourself an important question, yadda yadda, but I said Amortentia smells like your _cologne_." 

Draco takes a moment to catch up, and then glares.

"Maybe I just really like men's perfume?" He wonders out loud, with a little grin.

Draco makes a rude gesture. Then he pulls him closer and gives him a filthy kiss, right there in the entrance, in front of every person in the school. As Harry melts and the applause and catcalls erupt around then, he knows Draco is proving a point, but he thinks that might be okay anyway.  
  


**Epilogue ******

  
Throughout their years together Draco changes his colognes often, and regularly. The first couple times this happened Harry thought nothing of it. A lot of men and women have multiple perfume bottles they enjoy, after all, and they change between them depending on their mood. But as the time passes Harry starts to notice a pattern, a bunch of new ones after about six months, and then if Harry compliments one of them, it's that and nothing else during that same amount of time, until the next cycle. He finally confronts Draco after the eighth or tenth time, and he looks so surprised to have been caught out that he doesn't even have time to make up excuses.

"I- Well, I mean, I-. Okay, listen Harry, this whole thing started because you liked the way I smelled, alright? Which is nice, but I can't wear the same cologne for the rest of my life or I'll grow tired of it and you'll grow tired of-- of the smell, and if you grow tired of the smell, even if you still like or want to be with me, the next time you smell Amortentia it will have found something else to remind you of, or-- or someone else to remind you of, and I'd just like it if it was still me. Stop looking at me like that, I'm being perfectly rational. So yeah, I need to change colognes after awhile, but it has to be to something you like, and it can't be too often or you won't have enough time to associate that new one with me and Amortentia will still find something else to be. So I buy a bunch of them and test drive them on you until I find something you like."

"Oh my god." And he's trying not to laugh, he swears, he's trying so hard, but Draco is so ridiculous and he loves him so much that he just can't stop himself.

Draco glares at him, but after a few seconds he's smiling too, like he knows how stupid he's being but he doesn't care anyway. Except he doesn't know, he has _no idea_ how stupid he's being, and Harry is lost, laughing hysterically. 

"Well, if you want something to laugh about so badly you should probably know that one time I bought three French bottles when I was visiting my mother, the ones that seemed good at the store, and then when I tried them on the only you really liked was apparently the one I despised three seconds after actually using it. And when I couldn't sell you on the others I still wore it for _months_. I usually go for six, but I barely lasted four with that, before I decided I want Amortentia to smell like me for you, but that was a cost too high to pay. Throwing it away was one of the greatest pleasures of my _life_." 

Harry is crying by now, too far gone to care, and even Draco is laughing a little with him. He tries to compose himself, loses it, laughs for a solid five minutes, and later finally manages to gain some control.

"Draco, oh God Draco, Amortentia hasn't smelled like your colognes for me for years." Draco's face falls at that and Harry thinks he shouldn't have started with that, okay, his mistake. "No, listen, I love when we're, when we're lazing around somewhere, just lying down with you half on top of me and I get to, I don't know, pull you close and press kisses to your jaw and really smell your hair. And you're a methodical person, cologne related madness aside, so all these last years, all this time, you've actually used the same shampoo, something fresh and sharp and apple-y so--" 

" _No_." 

"...I think like, after the first year--" 

" _Absolutely not_." 

"...that we were together it was already that for me and I've tried again a few--"

"Fucking _fuck_." 

"...times since then and--" 

"Sweet Merlin, Potter, my _shampoo_??" 

Harry is suddenly defensive. 

"It's a good shampoo, okay? Also, you call me Harry these days."

Draco doesn't seem to listen.

"I- fuck." He looks so mad Harry starts to pity him. "Fuck that shampoo, I'm throwing the thing away, it can just fuck right off."

"Are you--" He can't, he needs to laugh, Oh God. "Are you jealous of the shampoo, Draco?" 

" _Fuck that shampoo_." It was very heartfelt. "I've been putting time, and effort into this, that's so ridiculous, Potter." 

"Try Harry." 

"Why didn't you ever tell me before?" 

"You didn't ask!" 

"Well, I- _fuck_." And then he's laughing, as much as the situation deserved, and Harry is there with him. When he stops, he looks at Harry and leans into him to press a quick kiss, but Harry isn't having any of that, and deepens it, bites his bottom lip. Presses up against him, both hands pulling on his hair. When he pulls away Draco is smiling softly at him, mesmerized. 

"Guess I didn't have to try so hard then." 

Harry grins. "You never did."

**Author's Note:**

> Check me out on tumblr! Also @ regencyaus


End file.
